A bit too bright

Just not possible with a mohican.

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A mohican is perhaps the worst hair style in terms of sound quality because it causes the sound waves to move faster but in an upwards trajectory towards the ceiling resulting in a phenomenon known as transposition but it can easily be remedied by wearing a towel over the head :man_with_turban:

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…or a Fez?

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New bird a squealer? :stuck_out_tongue_winking_eye:

A Fez is unfortunately not a good substitute because the tassel on top causes eddy currents that lead to turbulence and distortion of the primary standing waves. In addition, it does not cover the ears and would ruin a mohican resulting in a phenomenon known as bed head :relaxed:

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No, it has not been bugging me for days. Did you recall the word for which anthropomorphic/ism is an instance!?

The answer to the request contributions to a mellower speaker shortlist is easy - any speaker the character of which you like, with the tweeter disconnected! :slightly_smiling_face:

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Any sort of sibilance problem is a show stopper for me.

Sorry to say, but considering that you have an excellent set of classic Naim electronics, and unless you’re living in a glass house, the elephant in the room is…

…the speakers.

Yes, many of the excellent suggestions in this thread will probably move the dial a bit, but in the meantime, the elephant is showing no inclination to move his big, fat @$$.

Perhaps first switch to NACA5 and lose the marble shelf. Then if you are still experiencing brightness, see above.

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The OP has a Quadraspire rack with glass shelves. I agree tho, the speakers would seem to be the most likely source of sharpness.

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Hi that does sound extreme… reflections that cause cancellations and on higher frequencies can produce a comb filter effect… your brain can sift through that… however it does lead to the subtle change having ‘night and day ‘ affect phenomena.
I think, and in my experience, a key contributor is room reverberation in the upper mid frequencies that causes brightness. Do a sharp loud clap in your listening room… does the sound stop dead, or does it linger slightly… even for a few milliseconds. The more that sound lingers with the higher frequencies the more likely the brighter your system will sound in your room, especially if it’s a quality system producing higher frequencies.
This also is often deliberately handled in music production where reverb tails are frequency filtered to reduce a build up of frequencies.

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Pah - chickenfeed. This is a proper reflective elephant

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Causes fairly unpleasant glare, reduced definition in mids and reduced perception of the opposite channel. I smother it in cushions when in a serious session, which actually works a treat; but I really do need to come up with a more elegant (portable) solution. Any useful suggestions welcome.

Doesn’t that insulate the stove, stopping it heating the room? (Until the cushions catch fire)

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Reads like a heavy duty system :+1: … one thing … is there a redundant pair of speakers in the room / might that be affecting the sound? … btw love the stove and evidently thick walls, guessing it’s a lovely old property (… and wondering what the message on the hearth says and means).

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Good spot - the textile of/in the cushions is fire retardant and, at its core, are rare earth minerals which absorb the heat and, at a certain point, radiate it back into the room in pulses rythmically in tune with the bass beat of Gary Numan’s ‘Me I Disconnect from You’. It gets hot…

When the amps are playing I don’t need the fire on.

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That’s a pair of on-trial Audiovector R6’s. They’re probably doing something to my current sound but they’re only temporary and awaiting collection. Can’t move them right now owing to slipped disc. Good spot on the message - approximately ‘Dvgemenican vrsvconseno vantes idib’. It might have some latin in it but I rather think it’s gibberish. 1800’s old chapel-type building. You should be a detective :slight_smile:

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Wearing heavy clothing whilst listening helps to dampen brightness. I have found that wearing a snowsuit provides the best results as opposed to being naked.

I would also advise removing glasses/spectacles as these are avoidable sources of unwanted reflections :relaxed:

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I was with you until you mentioned the spectacles thing - that’s just silly; particularly if it leaves you visually impaired and liable to knock over that irreplaceable bottle of 30yr old single malt you only ever open on special occasions…

But seriously - that big lump of iron or whatever it is is a proper glare-headache.

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Ever tried the speakers at either side of the stove, firing down the other direction?

That is an excellent question. I have thought about it but the room is my lounge - 24’ x 12’ - and this is really the only configuration in which it can work effectively.

For the OP, surface reflections really are important to consider. But since he didn’t have an issue pre NDS/DR, perhaps these aren’t the problem, here. For me, I need some kind of easy-in, easy-out solution which minimises reflections off the stove and has a not-too-fat footprint. Googling…

FWIW - GIK to the rescue.